Roadmap to VCP5-DCV studying with autolab

How should I lab for the VCP5-DCV? I'm reading the Mastering Vsphere book by Scott Lowe, but really without labbing it's just words on a page. This book is a wake up call. There is so much that I didn't learn in the Install/Configure/Deploy class!

For those of you that passed - did you just try to do the things you read about? Build a lab from the ground up? Follow along with a video series?

I've built an autolab, but that was way too easy. I don't know what I was expecting....like a lab guide? I'm not a very imaginative person

Climb a mountain, tell no one.

0

Comments

Good question, I honestly have only labbed while reading through sections in the Scott Lowe book, not really setting up any formal scenarios like I probably should be. I've found that learning the new information is pretty awesome, but not working with VMware hardly at all, I just don't really get amped to lab with it.

I am labbing to a point where I know multiple ways to get to what I am looking for, but there is so much to remember I'm more focusing on config maximums and storage concepts as exam day draws near. I'm not expecting many questions directly related to the navigation of vSphere though, so hopefully that remains true

Good luck!

Back in my day we used to route packets on 56k lines, through the snow, uphill both ways.

1. Install VMware Workstation.
2. Install a Server 2008/2012 R2 VM - Sysprep it, Clone it so you have 2 Server VMs.
3. Promote the first Server VM as a domain controller.
4. Join the second Server VM to the first and install vCenter Server on it.
5. Setup a iSCSI target on either of your Server VMs or install Starwind and use that.
6. Install your first ESXi Host - do not clone them, you will get errors later on.
7. Install your second ESXi Host.
8. Install the vSphere Client on the vCenter Server, but you can hack it to be on the DC if you want.
9. Login to the vCenter Server and join your hosts to the Datacenter.

I hope I haven't left out a step - but that's the basic outline.

Play with the lab - I'm not a break it and then fix it type person. I want to know it then play with it. So do whatever way suits you.

CBT Nuggets & Pluralsight skim over huge parts of the process of labbing it up so they get to the more complicated parts of vSphere.

Oh and check this person's YouTube Channel, they are in Korea but it's good stuff... edit - you might need to go to the bottom to see all of the ESXi videos..

^That is perfect, I hadn't even thought about that aspect of labbing, is the initial setup. I loaded, addressed, and connected everything manually. I learned a LOT about servers through just setting up the lab, so even if I don't pass the exam, it was worth the knowledge I've gained of storage and servers.

Back in my day we used to route packets on 56k lines, through the snow, uphill both ways.

The process I do for labbing is to lab it up as per the book, and when finished reading the book, go back and do those labs without reading from the book whilst exploring and trying to "break" it and then fix it.

Build from the ground up, you need to know the process for building an AutoDeploy server. AutoLAB won't cover that as it is all automated so it is done for you. AutoLAB is great if you need to rebuild the lab multiple times for something that you don't need to go through the installation process of.